Chapter One: The Fading Shadow
by StarfieldRaven
Summary: Here, I introduce you to the main character, Sary, and her colorful daemon, Solaray. In this first chapter they meet up with an rather frightening creature...but what is it?


"She's lovely! And her daemon...born as a phoenix. Doesn't that mean  
something?"  
"It means she will have a daemon who is a phoenix until she's old  
enough to take more notice of it. That's all."  
"Are you sure, Kerr?"  
"Yes. Very."  
"Let's name her....Sary."  
"Gorgeous name...."  
In the small, tiled hospital room, the two new parents gazed in awe  
at their new daughter. She wasn't squalling; rather, she was staring, wide  
eyed, around the room. To her left, on a small glass table, a small, ember  
red phoenix perched daintly on the edge, cooing softly. All was tranquil  
here. All was at peace. It was as if the world had stopped breathing to  
admire its newest creation. But one can never hold their breath for too  
long....  
((end intro))  
"Solaray, c'mere!"  
Creeping through the dank, hot rainforest, Sary paused, nodding  
towards a small pond. It's emerald surface was bubbling rampantly, the  
turmoil of froth sending bullseye ripples towards the smelly, mud trodden  
shores. Above the soft churning of the pool, the sound of flapping could be  
heard. Sary didn't even glance up to know who it was.  
"Ewww...that's disgusting. Why are we looking at this?"  
"I wanna know what it is. Don't you?"  
"No, not particularly...."  
"Heh, well too bad, Sola. Come on."  
With a disdainful chirp the daemon followed. The creature had taken  
the form of a rainbow lorikeet nearly 4 years ago, when Sary had turned  
twelve. He hadn't changed since. Not that Sary minded; she had never seen  
anyone else with such a colorful daemon. Her mother once told her that  
Solaray had been born a phoenix...  
"Sary...it smells...really, really bad...."  
"But I bet it's really cool. Now get your birdy butt over here!"  
She kneedled, knees digging into the marshy soil. A grotesque glurp  
of mud bubbled before her. From the small indent that the bubble left, a  
green-grey eye appeared, then blinked away. Sary gasped.  
"Sola! Did you see that?!"  
"Yes, and I presume that it saw us as well."  
She didn't even bat an eye at the notion. One finger reached towards  
the grimy brown black mud, growing unnervingly close. Solaray began to  
shriek.  
"SARY! Don't you touch that! Here, use a stick!"  
She snatched the stick, lifting an eyebrow at her daemon. Always so  
cautious...sometimes annoyingly so. But then, he was usually only voicing  
things she felt inside anyway. Now had been one of those times. Taking the  
stick, she prodded the surface where the eye had been, smiling wryly. It  
wasn't long before an enourmous tentacle glopped itself about the branch.  
Sary let out a squeal of delight.  
"Haha! Look, Sola! It's soooo wierd!"  
The lory screeched and circled about her head in an overly excited  
state. As Sary raised the stick from the surface, a large, silver octopus  
began to squirm around, tightening its grip defensively. For a moment the  
girl and the squid stared each other down. Solray, however, became overly  
tense and knocked the stick from her hand, sending it back into the puddle  
with a lovely cascade of filth. Sary sat there, blinking slowly, uncertain  
of quite how to react.  
"Sola...?"  
"Yes?"  
"...."  
"Okay, Sary."  
The two sat there, neither speaking. Sola, for his part, was busy  
chuckling to himself. Sary was fuming. A soft rustle in the bushes from  
behind caused them both to cease all actions and thoughts. Daringly,  
Solaray shifted his head so that he had a clear view of Sary. With an ever  
so slight upward jerk of the head, he urged her to move closer. In an  
equally subtle response, she narrowed her eyes, wondering if he really  
wanted her to live. He had settled across from her, at the other side of  
the pond, which was as far as he dared to go from her. Now, he was  
regretting it.  
"Sary..." he hissed, taking a step forward boldly. She swallowed  
hard, her body seeming to freeze. She wanted to be closer to her  
daemon...another rustle, however, and she was frozen further still.  
Suddenly, as a dark shape began to take form, she was overpowered by a  
surge of her protective nature, and lept full across the pond to where  
Solaray stood. Throwing her arms about the lory, she rolled to the side,  
clutching the squabbling bird and glaring at the intruder.  
"Well!?" she cried derisively, staring it down. With a sullen sigh,  
the figure seemed to fade back into the recesses of the shady forest. Both  
Sary and Solaray could but stare, shivering slightly with fright. 


End file.
